1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, such as a copying machine, a printer or a multifunction peripheral with functions of these, having a function to perform sheet insertion at a specified position when paper printing is performed.
2. Description of the Related Art
Some multifunction peripheral (MFP) as an example of an image forming apparatus have a so-called sheet insertion function in order to cause a finally obtained print to be easily viewed.
As a specific example of the sheet insertion function used in a case where a copy of original documents including plural sheets is created, there is a function to insert, for example, a sheet having a different color, or a sheet having a different thickness or a white sheet (hereinafter referred to as “insertion sheet”) between pages desired by a user. In the case where the sheet insertion processing as stated above is performed, the user designates a paper feed tray of the insertion sheet and designates an insertion position of the insertion sheet by use of a paper number, and then, a copy job is started.
However, in the designating method of the sheet insertion condition as stated above, unless the user accurately grasps the page numbers of the original documents, the insertion position of the insertion sheet can not be designated. Especially, in the case where original documents including many pages are handled or in the case where the insertion number of the insertion sheets is large, it takes much time and labor for the user to accurately input the page number, and therefore, the working efficiency is poor. Besides, in the case where printing is performed on the insertion sheet, the sheet insertion condition becomes complicated, and the working load of the user is further increased.
Besides, for example, JP2002-204323 discloses a sheet insertion method in which plural original documents are sequentially read, and when the read images are printed out collectively, a specified sheet is automatically inserted between copies of the respective original documents.
However, in the image forming apparatus of JP2002-204323, in the case where the insertion sheet is desired to be changed, setting not to perform the sheet insertion at a desired position can not be performed and this is inconvenient.